Reese Witherspoon’s ‘Wild’ Picked Up By Fox Searchlight

The actress is set to star in the big-screen adaptation of author Cheryl Strayed’s memoir. Acclaimed novelist and screewriter Nick Hornby (About a Boy, High Fidelity) will pen the screenplay. Witherspoon and Bruna Papandrea will produce the flick alongside River Road Entertainment’s Bill Pohlad.

Wild chronicles Strayed’s solitary thousand-mile journey down the Pacific Crest Trail. The author reportedly embarked on the adventure following the death of her mother and the end of her marriage. Reese Witherspoon will portray Strayed in the upcoming adaptation.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, producers have yet to locate a director for the project. Once someone has been tapped to helm the project, production should begin at some point this fall.

“We are so excited to be working with Fox Searchlight to bring Wild to the screen. It is an extraordinary company that continually strives to bring original, inspirational films to the marketplace,” Reese Witherspoon said in a recent statement.

Entertainment Weekly reports that Fox Searchlight Pictures Presidents Stephen Gilula and Nancy Utley are long-time fans of Cheryl Strayed’s acclaimed memoir. Both Gilula and Utley seemed extremely incredibly excited to be handling North American distribution on the picture.

“We have long been huge fans of this visceral, inspirational and moving personal story with such a strong female perspective. It has been a dream of the studio to work with Reese Witherspoon and we are thrilled to be partnered with her, Bruna Papandrea, Bill Pohlad, and Nick Hornby,” the pair explained.

Reese Witherspoon currently has a number of projects looming on the cinematic horizon. In addition to Wild, the actress will appear alongside Keanu Reeves in sci-fi drama Passengers. The actress is also attached to director Paul Thomas Anderson’s Inherent Vice.

Are you a fan of Reese Witherspoon? What do you think about the actress starring in the big-screen adaptation of Cheryl Strayed’s memoir Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail?